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WHY K&A Travel Experts Was Created
Scene: casual conversation with strangers
“I’ve been to Italy! I stayed on the Amalfi Coast.”
“Brava! In which town did you stay?”
“Sorrento”
Sorrento is not on the Amalfi Coast. It is on the Sorrentine Peninsula.
My name is Kathleen. I was born and raised in Connecticut, U.S.A.
As an undergraduate, I left the country for the first time and studied abroad in Salamanca, Spain where I was bit by a massive travel bug. Traveling the world became my new leisure pursuit. Despite my great fear of being 40,000ft in the sky, stuck in a long tube moving in auto-pilot, carrying hundreds of people and thousands of pounds of luggage, I kept finding myself in front of a gate with a boarding card in my hand ready to take my assigned seat. (Alberto reminds me of the laws of motion when I look like I’m in need of some reassurance, but I’m not 100% there yet.)
Ireland, Costa Rica, Egypt, Scotland, Canada, Mexico, Greece, Aeolian Islands, England, islands of the Caribbean Sea . . . always grateful to touchdown. Friends and family started to initiate our conversations with, “Hey! Are you in the country?” I loved my new reputation.
Before setting foot at the airport, I always researched my destination extensively. I never left without an itinerary that detailed every minute of my upcoming getaway. Those who know me couldn’t understand how I was not in the business of creating these “masterpieces” for others.
I didn’t mention Italy in that list of countries, did I . . .
I was saving the best for last.
In 2019, I planned a return trip to the boot. This time, I was set to start my journey in Naples and end in Palermo, Sicily. The main reasons for this trip were to visit the village in which my grandmother had been born and the city from which my grandfather’s family hailed. (Don’t let the red hair fool you. My mother is 100% Italian.) What a trip. I’m still patting myself on the back for that one.
Scene: Alitalia Flight AZ608 - flight attendant approaches me
A - “Hello Madam, did you order a vegetarian meal?”
K - “Yes. However, on the way here, I received a cucumber sandwich for dessert and everyone around me got tiramisù. I eat tiramisù!” What’s gotten into you, Kathleen? You’d never make such a complaint! Subconsciously, I must have wanted to keep the conversation going.
Alberto told me that Alitalia (now ITA) serves the finest meals of all the airlines in the sky and assured me that I would receive the strawberry cheesecake being served on the day’s flight.
I got seconds, too. And vino. And chocolate. The rest is history.
I have now become a regular on ITA flights, recognized often by crew members. Passport control officers at FCO leaf through the pages of my passport wearing what feels like a forbidden smile, trying to find a blank page for another stamp, authorizing me to enter Italy, my new home.
K&A Travel Experts was born on the streets of Santorini. While site-seeing and chatting, I discussed the idea with Alberto. By sunset, my heart was set on it.
K&A Travel Experts is deeply passionate about guiding travelers to experience breathtaking areas of southern Italy in the most factual and authentic way, both on - and off - the beaten path.
Can’t wait to meet you.